A Star to Guide Them By
by Firefury Amahira
Summary: [SPOILERS FOR BOTH GAMES] No rest for the wicked, they say. Just days after Jormungandr's defeat, Zazie predicts fresh troubles just before a shooting star drops that trouble right in everyone's lap.
1. Prologue: Departure

**A Star to Guide Them By**

Written by: Firefury Amahira

**Standard disclaimer**: All the stuff from Boktai I do not own. You can thank Konami for making the games and making them so damn fun to play and so addictive, too. All the non-canon material though is mine. Use it without my permission and be smited! I've had to put a lot of thought into the original material I use to fill out the plot!

* * *

**Prologue: Departure**

"Halt! Stop what you're doing and come out!"

"For the love of-! Sitara, think of the consequences of this!"

The guards received no reply from the crude transport or its single occupant other than the soft glow of the magical arts enveloping it and gently easing it away from the high walls of the city.

"My Lady, she will not stop. She intends to go Below." One of the men clad in the liveries of the city guard turned to address the agitated noblewoman who stood nearby watching events unfold.

"This cannot be allowed. We cannot interfere Below, or let one of our own open the door to the troubles there to come here." The woman sighed heavily, obviously unhappy with the order she now had to issue. "If she will not see reason, we must bring her back by force if we can, or otherwise prevent her from reaching her destination, lest it spell the end for all of us."

The guards nodded agreement and lined up near the woman, adding their magic to her own as she raised one glowing hand in the direction of the unwieldy craft. "I am sorry for this, my child, but we have tried since your youth to divert your dangerous interests. Since you pursue this foolishness beyond reason and bring shame to your House, I must prevent it."

The entire city shivered slightly at the energies the woman marshaled to rein in the rapidly shrinking craft. The woman squinted into the distance, her aim wavering as beads of sweat began to adorn her brow. "I cannot bring it back. She is resisting our power combined with her own, unlikely though it would seem."

The captain of the guard turned a somber gaze on the lithe woman. "Then by our Laws, she is Fallen, stripped now of House and lineage, shamed beyond all redemption, and forbidden from this city lest she return with the Immortals nipping at her heels. We must not permit one with her strength and dangerous knowledge to run about Below, either, lest those of the darkness add her to their number and use her knowledge to bring our doom upon us."

The woman sighed heavily, struggling to maintain her composure in spite of what she must do. "I understand. House Polaris no longer has a daughter to succeed it."

A globe of silvery energy formed in the air before the woman's upraised palm, nothing soft or gentle about it, a sharp contrast to the powers propelling the little transport, already starting to shine fiery red from its descent. With a heavy heart, the woman let fly her deadly projectile, her aim sure. She could not bear to watch as it exploded.

* * *

_Author's notes:_ Hopefully the artistic license I end up taking with the canon Boktai material won't offend anybody. The canon stuff is so vague and leaves gaping holes in backstory, character development, and so on that pretty much any really huge fanfiction undertaking is going to have to take some liberties for the sake of the story. Also, this fic is being written based on the first two games. I'm aware there is a third one in the works, but for the purposes of this fic, the events in this assume no new canon material after the end of Boktai 2. Also, to set the record straight in what appears to be a very tiny and tight-knit fandom, I am most decidedly of the non-yaoi persuasion. While it could be possible for any of the main characters to be gay, I am firmly anti-twincest. I won't flame at anybody who is, and would hope that respect to be mutual. In short, if you're looking for a fic where Django and Sabata get it on, look elsewhere please. Also, I will be introducing a number of original characters, but have no plans of any of them getting it on with anybody, either. I just simply got smacked upside the head with an idea, and this is the result.(Okay, to be perfectly honest, this originally started out a simple writing exercise to get a feel for handling the canon characters in preparation of a Boktai RP. I'm still not sure how it went from character exercise to full-blown fanfic.)

Lastly, thanks go to my beta-readers, Movodor Alarin, Orcrist, and One Amahira. Without their encouragement, I rather suspect this would still be sitting unread in my school notebook.

Comments and critiques are appreciated, flames will be duly ignored and/or made fun of!


	2. Omens of a Potentially Ill Nature

**A Star to Guide Them By **

Written by: Firefury Amahira**  
**

** Standard disclaimer:** All the stuff from Boktai I do not own. You can thank Konami for making the games and making them so damn fun to play and so addictive, too. All the non-canon material though is mine. Use it without my permission and be smited! I've had to put a lot of thought into the original material I use to fill out the plot!

* * *

**Chapter One: Omens of a Potentially Ill Nature**

"Can't sleep again, Django?"

With a startled yelp, the blond boy spun around only to find his brother standing in the path to the Solar Tree's plaza. The Dark Boy had a terrible habit of sneaking up on his Solar opposite, especially in the past several calm days following the sealing of the Doomsday Beast Jormungandr. Everyone involved was finally beginning to relax, and the besieged city of San Miguel was finally beginning to resume some semblance of normality. With the world no longer in any imminent danger, the unspoken consensus was to stay in the city for a time and fully recover from the battle with Dainn.

"I've been having trouble sleeping lately." Django admitted after a long moment, wondering to himself if Sabata was in one of his obnoxious or thoughtful moods. The Solar Boy assumed the latter when the purple-haired youth sat down in the grass next to him and contemplated the starry sky above.

"Just insomnia or is it because of _that_?" Sabata inquired once he'd gotten comfortable. There was no need to specify what "that" was; they both knew what had happened to the Solar Boy as part of Dainn's scheme.

The question was met with a long silence before Django responded with an uncertain, "I don't know. Maybe both."

Sabata wasn't particularly good at offering thoughtful, emotional support, but was smart enough not to give voice to the sharp remark that first came to mind regarding Django's decidedly awkward situation. Instead, the Dark Boy turned the conversation toward simpler, more mundane topics. "Even in ruins this city is something else." He remarked with a shrug toward the broken cityscape around them. "I never did get to see it before the Count wrecked it."

"That's too bad." Django agreed, followed by another long and awkward silence. The past several days had been full of similar short, fumbling conversations, the first prolonged time the brothers had shared without more immediate and life-threatening concerns dominating their thoughts. While they had left Istrakan together, they hadn't stayed around each other for long at all, Sabata had left claiming he had to do something for Carmilla's soul. The purple-haired youth's situation worried Django all the way back to San Miguel until the Dark Boy had shown up injured but otherwise intact in the desert ruins east of the city. That reunion had been short though, what with Django getting felled by a vampire bite, and then Sabata nearly getting himself killed using the Pile Driver to save the Solar Boy with mixed results. Django wondered what had become of Carmilla's soul, but Sabata hadn't offered up an explanation, and he wasn't going to pry.

"I wonder what Zazie and Master Otenko have been talking about all this time?" The Solar Boy tried another topic. He suspected he had found a good subject when he heard Sabata snort derisively next to him

"Otenko and that flower girl have been at it for two days now." Sabata grumbled. "Whatever it is, I bet it means more trouble for us."

Django stifled a snicker at Sabata's obvious disdain for Zazie. The Dark Boy and the Sunflower Girl seemed to have a mutual disliking for the other, and could seldom go more than a few minutes without exchanging insults. He assumed that Sabata wasn't used to people talking back to him without any measure of fear or even something resembling respect, and Zazie… well, she didn't take flak from _anyone_. Django could easily envision the spunky star-reader giving Black Dainn a most thorough tongue-lashing had the two ever crossed paths.

Sabata turned his head to glare briefly at the blond, apparently sensing his brother's amusement. "What's so funny?" He demanded.

"Just thinking." Django managed to keep most of the amusement out of his tone. "About what happened three days ago."

"Hmph!"

Three days ago, Sabata had made a rather critical mistake, ignoring Django's warnings. The Dark Boy had interrupted Zazie's nap. He was positively livid afterwards; well, after the Freeze spell finally thawed out, at least. The entire situation had been amusing, to put it mildly. But the next day, the star-reader had seemed incredibly uneasy, and had requested to speak in private with Otenko, who had readily obliged. After a few hours of presumably urgent discussion, the pair had emerged long enough to request they not be disturbed. They had hardly been seen since.

Silence opted to hover once more as the two boys regarded the sky overhead again, the first vestiges of dawn still several hours off.

"What are you going to do when you leave?" Django broke the silence with more small talk.

"Dunno." Sabata responded absently. "Haven't thought about it. You?"

The Solar Boy shrugged. "I'd like to go back to Sol City." He admitted. "I didn't get to see much of it when we were there."

"If what Dainn said is true, San Miguel's the same kind of place as Sol City." Sabata pointed out.

"Except San Miguel has been grounded to keep Jormungandr sealed for ages. That's a big difference." Django countered.

Further conversation on the matter was halted by the bright slash of a shooting star across the night sky. A shooting star that seemed far too low, large, and bright for any normal shooting star. Both the boys jumped to their feet as the plaza was bathed in the eerie silver light of the thing. The meteor was distinguishable from the bright plume of its tail, a loose cloud of superheated stuff, bits and pieces tearing away from the edges as it plummeted.

While the two watched, the meteor seemed to visibly swerve its course and slow down noticeably before it disappeared behind the walls of the city instead of striking somewhere within the city itself. A moment later a flash of light lit the area as bright as day and a low rumble akin to a thunderclap rocked the ground and rolled over the city.

Before the last echoes of the blast had faded, both Django and Sabata were running in the direction of the fallen star, weapons ready. Zazie and Otenko met them on the way to the gates, both looking oddly disturbed. Lita, perhaps the only one who had actually been sleeping, was slower to arrive, having been rousted by the commotion.

"What happened?" The Earthly Maiden asked sleepily. "What was that noise?"

"It looked like a shooting star." Django offered by way of explanation.

"Except shooting stars don't crash land like that." Sabata muttered as the small group approached the area where the thing came down.

"Well quit yer chitchat already an' let's see what it is!" Zazie snapped at the purple-haired boy, though it was obvious her mind was occupied with matters other than sniping at Sabata.

Oddly enough, the impact site didn't look much like an impact crater. There was a very shallow depression in the ground, ringed by charred and flattened grass and shrubs, steaming bits of stone and metal littering the area, presumably what was left of the original meteor. The scent of ozone, and oddly enough, burned hair and flesh tinged the area, not yet dispersed by the breeze.

"Phew. What stinks?" Zazie covered her nose and fanned the air in front of her while she peered over the darkened crater, her gaze falling on the faint reflection of moonlight off a silver and red form. Her startled gasp quickly drew the attention of the others.

Sabata, having the best night vision of those present (with the possible exception of Django if the Solar Boy changed to his vampire form), picked his way through the maze of still-hot debris to what was unmistakably in his eyes a girl, curled up on her side, the scorched remains of what had likely been a fine silver robe barely keeping her decent, most of her pale skin marred and bloodied by burns and lacerations, her long hair a tangled, matted mess, and a surprisingly unscathed cloth-wrapped bundle held close to her stomach, shielded from most of the damage by the curve of her body.

"She's alive." The Dark Boy concluded loud enough for the rest to hear him after noting the weak rise and fall of the girl's chest. "But I don't think she will be for long. She's in sorry shape."

Questions would have to wait. Who the girl was, where she came from and why, what did she have to do with that meteor? Django and Sabata carefully carried their unconscious visitor, while Lita gathered up the bundle of what was likely the strange girl's belongings. Zazie and Otenko trailed behind the procession in quiet discussion.

"Omens don't come any more blatant than that, y'know." Zazie gestured in the direction of the girl. The sun's messenger bobbed his head in agreement.

"I don't doubt she's your 'fallen star'." Otenko agreed, concern coloring his voice. "The question is, what about the other elements from your star reading? The 'Star of Darkness', the 'last bastion of the kindred'?"

"If I knew, I'd tell ya." She shrugged. "If that 'fallen star' there lives, maybe she kin tell us."

In short order, the girl was delivered to the inn and into the care of Lita and Zazie, who both made it quite clear to Django, Sabata, and Otenko that there would be dire consequences if the guys peeked in on the girl while they undressed her and treated her wounds.

The trio stood with identical expressions of surprise at the now-closed door for a long moment before retreating to the common room on the lower floor.

"With that girl's arrival, there's something I should explain." Otenko interrupted the silence, the attention of the two boys quickly focusing on the little flower. "You recall the star-reading by Zazie's mentor which predicted Black Dainn's actions and the events surrounding the Ancestor Piece?"

Django nodded glumly, while Sabata crossed his arms and voiced a brief confirmation. "So what does that have to do with this?"

"Two days ago, Zazie performed her own star reading, and it resulted in some unsettling prophecy." Otenko explained, pausing briefly before reciting the star reading from memory. "When the grand twilight draws to a close, The Star of Darkness will rise, And bring down its Judgment upon the world. A lone fallen star shall make itself known, And once again lead the dance of the Heavens. Those thought lost shall awaken, And face a reckoning of defeat, When the Sun shines on the last bastion of the kindred, The ending of their own design will fall."

"'Star of Darkness'-?" Sabata frowned in thought.

"An Immortal?" Django glanced at his brother.

"Not one that I know of." The Dark Boy admitted. "Maybe it's something else?"

"What particularly concerns me is the 'fallen star' upstairs." Otenko gestured at the stairs with one leaf-like appendage. "I have a suspicion about what she is and perhaps where she may be from. If I'm correct, her arrival could be a very good thing or a very bad thing."

That had the attention of both the boys, who simultaneously showered the sun spirit with questions.

"Her arrival leaves little doubt, if she did arrive by way of that meteor." Otenko paused, pondering how best to explain information that he himself had only learned secondhand about a time before he had come to Earth to protect the life on the blue planet. "Before I came to this world, there was another race, perhaps more ancient than both the Solar and Lunar Children."

Django and Sabata exchanged glances at that. Something that the sun spirit didn't know much about with any certainty was rare. "Another race?"

"Just as there were entire civilizations aligned with the Sun and the Moon, I learned from the Solar Children during Sol City's prime of an older group who claimed alignment with the stars, and had built massive floating cities long before they had even dreamed of such things." Otenko continued.

"Star Children?" Sabata guessed. He briefly wondered if Hel had known of such people. If she had, the Queen had never mentioned it in his presence.

"Lacking another name for them, yes." The flower nodded. "But I was told they had all disappeared a long time ago, the greatest of their cities simply lifted into the sky and disappeared, the rest of their cities failing in the same feat and crashing to earth. The survivors had all passed away years prior, and no one knew the fate of the Star Home."

"You think that city not only still exists, but actually has people living in it?" Sabata looked and sounded quite dubious. "It took Hel a lot of time and effort to gather enough power just to lift her fortress into space. I can't imagine what it would take to raise an entire _city_!"

"By all accounts I was told, they were exceedingly powerful." Otenko stated flatly. "With even the least among them stronger in the magical arts than the Queen, by several orders of magnitude. Her castle likely would have been a simple matter for them."

"So depending on that girl's intentions, if she is from that city, she could be helping against the Star of Darkness, or a very dangerous opponent?" Django summarized neatly.

"Whatever _that_ is." Sabata snorted.

"I imagine we'll find that out soon enough."

* * *

_Author's notes:_ Yay, stuff that makes sense to the reader, right? Done with the vague stuff and on to the stuff with the characters you all give a care about! For the record, Zazie is a pain in the ass to write. 

As always, comments appreciated, flames not!


	3. Memory Problems

**A Star to Guide Them By**

Written by: Firefury Amahira**  
**

** Standard disclaimer:** All the stuff from Boktai I do not own. You can thank Konami for making the games and making them so damn fun to play and so addictive, too. All the non-canon material though is mine. Use it without my permission and be smited! I've had to put a lot of thought into the original material I use to fill out the plot!

* * *

**Chapter Two: Memory Problems**

Despite her injuries, the girl seemed to be healing well, and Lita soon declared that with care, the stranger would make a full recovery.

Except that she still had not regained consciousness after several days, frustrating her watchers to no end. Her intentions had been debated, refuted, discussed, and argued, but without her input, speculation was simply that. A search through her scant belongings didn't turn up anything useful either; just a spare change of clothing and a pair of finely made short swords, the two weapons of obviously mystic origin. The runes down both the silver blade and the black blade were unreadable, even to Otenko.

They took turns watching the girl, waiting for her to wake up. So it was Sabata, yawning and about to turn the watch over to his brother who noticed the girl begin to stir at sunrise a few days later. The Dark Boy shouted down the stairs that the girl was waking up and was answered by Django's brief confirmation and the sound of footsteps as the Solar Boy went to get Lita and Zazie, assuming the star reader wasn't napping. Otenko joined Sabata upstairs as the girl mumbled something unintelligible and dazedly opened her eyes, staring uncomprehendingly at the wooden ceiling overhead. Sabata was slightly surprised by the girl's eyes, an oddly mismatched pair, the left a pale, bright blue, the other a deep shade of purple, almost black.

"You're finally awake." Otenko said, drawing the girl's attention. "How do you feel?"

The girl stared at the sun spirit with such a bewildered expression that Sabata had to look away or start laughing.

"A talking flower?" The girl finally found her voice, the words laden with a slightly archaic accent. She quickly recovered from her surprise and sat up in the bed, the sheets held to cover herself, and half-bowed. "Forgive my rudeness. I feel… rather sore."

The others returned, catching the girl's mismatched gaze. "If you'd been awake a few days ago, you'd be a lot worse than sore." Sabata snorted, indicating the scrap of silver fabric draped over a nearby chair, all that was left of the girl's robe. It seemed to take the girl a moment to make sense of his words, but mild surprise showed on her face.

"Have I been asleep long?" She inquired, her gaze fixated on the red-stained silver cloth.

"Y'been out since we found yer more'n a week ago all burned up." Zazie remarked. "Sure made an entrance, fallin' outta the sky like that."

It took the girl longer to decipher the star reader's very informal speech, but her increasingly dumbfounded expression dispelled the initial impression that she might be somewhat snobby. "Fell from the sky-?" She looked and sounded confused.

"Before we get into that-" Otenko interrupted before the baffled girl could get grilled for answers. "We don't even know your name."

"Oh, my name? Sitara of the…" She paused mid-sentence, a frown darkening her expression. "… of the…"

Django and Otenko exchanged glances as the girl's frown deepened while she tried to dredge the full introduction from her memory, the first stirrings of a bone-deep fear creeping into her face.

"'Of the'-?" The sun spirit prompted.

"I… can't remember." The girl quietly admitted, clutching tightly at the bed sheets. "Proper introductions include use-name, as well as House and lineage, but…"

"You were badly injured." Lita sat down on the bed and put a reassuring hand on the girl's shoulder. "It's not surprising your memory is fuzzy after that kind of shock. I bet it'll come back to you in time."

"Hmf! So much for finding out what she has to do with the Star of Darkness." Sabata turned to the door, stifling a yawn. "I'm going to bed."

"Don't mind him." Django glanced over after the Dark Boy had exited the room. "He was up all night keeping watch."

"I'm deeply sorry for whatever trouble I have caused." Sitara apologized quietly. "Of your kindness, would you explain how I came to be here?"

Otenko took the lead in introducing Sitara to her rescuers and explaining to the girl how they had found her. Django supplied the details of the meteor's fall, and then Lita and Zazie summarized the seriousness of Sitara's injuries when she'd be discovered. By the end of the explanation, the look of extreme confusion on her face was nearly comical, mouth hanging slightly open in disbelief, mismatched eyes wide.

"I don't recall any of that." Sitara finally remarked around her surprise. "Though it sounds as if that may be something of a blessing."

"Speaking of memory, you said earlier you couldn't recall your House or lineage." Otenko floated over to the foot of the bed to better address Sitara. "But you seem to recall your name well enough. Is there anything else you remember? Something that might help us figure out where your home is?"

Sitara frowned in deep thought, her earlier fear about her memory loss already turning to frustration, an obstacle to surpass. "Home? It was a city…"

The others waited patiently while the platinum haired girl struggled to grasp at the fleeting shadows of memory. "A large city, with lots of silver everywhere. And far fewer people living there than it was built to house." Sitara glanced toward the window, noticing something that seemed to greatly surprise her. "And the sky was always black, no matter the time of day, not blue. Is that common here? It is such a lovely color."

That seemed to surprise those in the room, but Otenko mused to himself that it would certainly confirm his suspicions that the amnesiac girl was in fact one of the lost Star Children. "Yes, during the day the sky is blue. It turns a much darker blue, close to black at night."

"I don't recall ever seeing a blue sky… just black. My city must be very far from here then." Sitara seemed to oddly brighten at that conclusion. "Which means I will have to travel a great deal to find it?"

"Not in your condition." Lita surveyed the platinum-blond girl with a critical eye. "Your injuries are healing well, but you aren't leaving this room until those burns are more fully healed."

That seemed to take the wind right out of the girl's sails as she slumped slightly and nodded. "Yes, you are right, it would be quite bad to push my luck farther than I already have. But once I am fit, then?"

Lita looked about ready to say something, but Otenko opted to interrupt. "Sitara, you're likely right that your silver city is quite distant from San Miguel, but I suspect it can't be reached by simple travel. Since you fell from the sky, it's safe to assume you had to have fallen from somewhere very high, from somewhere in space, if you've never seen a blue sky before. The means of finding it, let alone reaching it, are probably magical."

Zazie and Django both pinned Otenko with surprised looks, not having thought the sun spirit would allude to the possibility that their guest was one of these supposedly powerful Star Children so soon. The comment didn't seem to elicit any recognition from Sitara though, who nodded slightly in thought.

"And if such means are to be found, they are lost somewhere among all the other things I seem to be forgetting right now?" She assumed aloud. "Pity that I can't find my way home any time soon."

"Y'don't sound all that torn up about not findin' yer hometown." Zazie observed, catching the lack of any sort of despair in Sitara's tone.

"If you must know, the truth is that I do not feel much inclined to rush back to wherever 'home' is. I do not yet recall specific memories, but I recall enough of a sense of despair." Sitara addressed the star-reader, her tone not confrontational, but certainly blunt. "I recall often asking about some place… Everyone called it 'Below', I think. In any event, I vaguely recall being informed that it was not my business and to disregard such foolishness. If I must run about minus some unpleasant memories, I imagine it will be worth it to indulge a desire to travel that no injury could make me forget."

"Do you remember why you were discouraged from asking about… 'Below'?" Django asked before Zazie could compose a suitably sharp retort.

Sitara frowned in thought, the expression quickly becoming associated with the girl trying to drag something useful out of her muddled memory. "I think… I should know this, I really should. People in the city were not supposed to interfere with Below, I think it was. Everyone was afraid something awful would happen, that… who was it? … I can't remember. Just that someone would find a way to the city and cause a great deal of trouble, perhaps even destroy the place."

Looks were exchanged among those in the room already familiar with Zazie's prophesy. Was it possible that the nameless 'someone' was the Star of Darkness?

It would be another four days before Lita pronounced Sitara recovered enough to get out of bed and walk around for any length of time. True to the Earthly Maiden's predictions, the platinum haired girl seemed to recover tiny bits of memory as time passed. No sooner had Sitara finally gotten into her spare change of clothing- black pants, purple tunic, bright silver chest plate, gauntlets, and shoulder pads, and a black travel cape with a white inner lining- then she was raring to explore her new surroundings. She seemed completely enthralled with the idea of a city where one did not have to take care to avoid plummeting from a precipice too vast to contemplate. Things that Django and the rest seemed to take for granted captured Sitara's attention- that stars twinkled at night, that the sky turned several various shades of warm color besides blue at sunrise and sunset. She seemed positively stunned silly the first time she saw the Moon at night.

Needless to say, her intense fascination with everything resulted in her sleeping irregularly, meaning she was often catnapping during the day, or roaming around at night. Sitara's thirst for knowledge had managed to drag a shortened version of Django's misadventures in Istrakan and San Miguel out of the Solar Boy. Sabata had decided to try and studiously avoid the enthusiastic girl, not wanting to be pestered by her rampant curiosity. He managed well enough, utilizing his particular abilities to vacate the area when he heard her running around at night, and he tended already to be scarce during the day due his low tolerance for sunlight.

One such night, the Dark Boy spotted Sitara lying on her back in the grass, much the same way he and Django had been the night she'd fallen to Earth. Not wanting to deal with her, Sabata began to quietly edge around to the far end of the plaza, trusting in his stealthy tread to avoid detection.

"I do not mean to be rude, but no matter how quiet you are, you do rather stand out to anyone with some sensitivity to the magical arts." The platinum blonde's voice commented in the dark. "If you don't want to talk, you only have to say as much."

That stopped Sabata in his tracks as he spun to look over. Sitara hadn't so much as turned her head in his direction, yet she'd known he was there. "So you knew I was here?" He muttered.

"As I said before, you do tend to stand out oddly. I hadn't commented on it prior as it seemed you were not feeling particularly social." Sitara responded easily. "Your brother also stands out to a lesser degree, like whatever it is I feel off him is hidden below the surface rather than openly admitted to. I haven't asked him about it since it seemed to me something of a personal nature, and for all the generosity I've been shown, I am still a stranger here."

That piqued the Dark Boy's curiosity, so he grudgingly decided to have a seat. Maybe he could jog the girl's memory, or perhaps find out something else that could be useful. "And just what is it that you're so sensitive to?"

Sitara remained quiet for a long moment, obviously thinking on how to respond. "I am not entirely sure. Lacking a more diplomatic description, it is power, but a tainted one."

Sabata snorted, a sort of short laugh, which startled the girl. "So you can sense darkness like Otenko, can you?"

The surprise in Sitara's voice was plain as day. "Is that what it is?" She sat up and peered at Sabata with narrowed eyes, seemingly looking for something. "Yes… I suppose that is it. Despite such, you are not Immortal. How strange."

The Dark Boy made a particularly derisive sound. "Things never got _that_ far. So you know about the Immortals then?"

"Bits of my memory _have_ returned. The reason no one was to leave the city was for fear that it would enable the Immortals to find their way in and bring ill fortune to the people." Sitara retorted. "I remember the excessive paranoia well enough. That was part of why I wished to leave so badly. Life in the city was stale and dull. I wished desperately to leave and see the world Below that the schools studied so much."

"Did your schools ever talk about a Star of Darkness?" Sabata inquired, figuring it was as good a time as any to see if enough of the girl's memory had returned to start deciphering Zazie's star reading.

"This is the second time you have mentioned such a thing in my presence. No, I cannot recall learning of such a thing. May I ask why this thing seems to concern you so?"

Sabata contemplated the question for a moment, debating if telling this strange girl that there was a pretty good chance she was going to be tangled up in some prophesy was a good idea or not. There was little doubt in his mind she was obviously the 'fallen star' from Zazie's prophesy, and to him it seemed likely that the answers to the remaining unknowns were locked away in Sitara's addled memory.

"You might as well be clued in. Maybe it'll knock loose some useful memory." The purple haired youth finally commented. "Zazie's a star reader. I don't know exactly what she does, but she can predict the future or do some fortune telling."

"She is quite blunt." Sitara interjected. "And her accent is strange. I find her rather difficult to understand when she speaks."

"Hah!" Sabata barked out a short laugh at the remark. "That's an understatement. Anyway, she came up with some sort of prophesy that everybody thinks you're probably part of."

"Prophesy?" That had the girl's attention. "I do not wish to pry, but would you please tell me more of this?"

Sabata obliged and recited the vaguely worded prophesy for the girl, who frowned in deep thought. The Dark Boy watched the pale girl carefully, looking for any telltale signs that something had been jogged loose in her memory. Instead, the girl shrugged helplessly after a long moment.

"I am truly sorry. I see where I may fit into this prophesy as the 'fallen star', but I do not know anything about this Star of Darkness or the 'dance of the Heavens' or these lost people." Sitara admitted, returning her gaze to the stars above.

"I've got an idea about the lost people, actually." Sabata eyed the girl. "Otenko's convinced you're from some lost race of Star Children, which makes sense with all that stuff in the prophesy. If you're from this legendary lost city, it makes sense that the people there are the lost ones."

_That_ seemed to jog something in the girl's fuzzy memory. "I think that you are correct. It feels familiar. The stars, I mean. I am nearly recovered completely- perhaps in the morning I may test my abilities and see if what I recall of magic is accurate. I think perhaps that will prove beyond doubt if the talking flower is correct about my home." She quickly stood up, stifling a yawn, and bowed neatly to the still-seated youth. "Sabata, you have my gratitude for speaking to me of these things. Now that I am aware, I will be certain to remark on it should my memory return to me with any knowledge that may be of use. For now however, I had best return to my bed, much as I do enjoy the night sky. I have enjoyed speaking with you. Perhaps we may talk further sometime, if it will not trouble you."

Sabata snorted at the girl's formality. "Maybe."

* * *

_Author's notes:_ Sitara's a pain to write too. Different reasons than why Zazie's tough to write. Zazie's got that real short slangy way of talking (at least in the US version. I am told she probably has a Kansai accent in the Japanese version), Sitara's all formal wordy with her speaking. And no, before anyone can cry "self-insert!" or "Mary Sue!", 1) Sitara and Sabata are not going to hook up as a couple. He's got too many issues of his own, and she's got her own issues. 2) Sitara is about as far opposite of me as many of my characters get. She's more tactful, formal, and a whole hell of a lot nicer than I usually am. She's there to help kick the story into gear! 

So, mini-rant aside, comments are welcome, flames will be used to light the trashcan on fire.


	4. Darkness is Not a Morning Person

**A Star to Guide Them By**

Written by: Firefury Amahira**  
**

** Standard disclaimer:** All the stuff from Boktai I do not own. You can thank Konami for making the games and making them so damn fun to play and so addictive, too. All the non-canon material though is mine. Use it without my permission and be smited! I've had to put a lot of thought into the original material I use to fill out the plot!

* * *

**Interlude One: Darkness Is Not a Morning Person**

_Brother, awaken from slumber! I have news both disturbing and interesting for you and those of us who remain._

Slowly, almost lazily, the lid of the coffin slid open, the occupant obviously groggy in the dark room. A pair of pale, lithe hands pushed down against the edges of the simple thing, lifting a tall, slender form from where it had been sleeping. Red eyes swept the dark crypt, irritation written all over the pale face. _It has been some time since you last spoke with me, Duchess. What news have you that concerns those of us on the surface?_

The response reverberated with a mental chuckle, a joke the tall man was not yet let in on. _One of the Kindred has left the city. Her vessel I am told was destroyed, but I believe that she has survived the fall to Earth. I believe she may prove a useful addition to our number. Despite the waning of the Kindred's power, she shows great promise, especially now that she is returned to the land the Kindred left behind._

The man's face contorted into an angry scowl. _How is this news interesting? The seals of my sister bind us yet. I cannot leave this place to add her to our number even if I desired to do so._

Another one of those light chuckles answered him in the gloom. _The power of the Kindred wanes as we speak, Brother. The seals wane with them. Surely you have felt the recent shifts in power? One of our lesser kindred managed to raise some sort of fortress into the high Heavens before the last dregs of the Solar and Lunar Children destroyed her._

_I am aware._ The man snarled, contempt clear in his mindvoice. _First that lunatic Hel and her pet experiment, and then that incompetent fool Dainn. They shame our House with their weakness._

_So you see why this is an opportunity for us, do you not? There is a lapse in power within the dark House. Were we to replace the two who shamed us at the hands of the Fallen, we could easily seize control and expand our power further._

The man paced the cold floor of the crypt. _Yes, I see the opportunity._ Coming to a massive steel door set into one wall, he hesitantly reached a hand out to the cold surface, obviously expecting something unpleasant, given the way he approached the portal. _Let us test the seals and see if they may yet break._

The man cringed when he felt the cool metal underneath his long fingers, but only a mild burning sensation scorched the tips. His red eyes widened slightly in pleased surprise as he firmly pressed both hands to the door and tried to shove the heavy thing open. _The seals barely hold now. It will take some time, but soon I shall be released from this prison, that I may free our Kindred and take my rightful place at the head of the House, regardless of what displeasure our lesser Kindred may voice._

He could feel the glee in the Duchess's reply. _I await your release, my Lord Brother. I tire of hiding in this city and look forward to ending its long flight. It will be a grand celebration to mark our return, will it not?_

The man smiled then, showing the distinctive fangs of a vampire. _Indeed it will.

* * *

_

_Author's notes:_ And so we have more vague stuff to hint at Bad Things. Who is this Duchess? Where is she? For that matter, where the hell Mr. Tall, Dark, and Immortal locked up? Do Immortals drink coffee? Because he could probably go for some.

Comments appreciated, flamers will be stabbed in the eye with Otenko's nose.


	5. Arrogance of a Silver Blindness

**A Star to Guide Them By**

Written by: Firefury Amahira**  
**

** Standard disclaimer:** All the stuff from Boktai I do not own. You can thank Konami for making the games and making them so damn fun to play and so addictive, too. All the non-canon material though is mine. Use it without my permission and be smited! I've had to put a lot of thought into the original material I use to fill out the plot!

* * *

**Interlude Two: The Arrogance of a Silver Blindness**

"We must send someone Below to capture or destroy the Fallen Star!"

"But High Chancellor, is it really possible that the girl survived? Her mother and the city guard saw her vessel meet certain demise as it fell."

The High Chancellor, a slender, fair-skinned woman dressed in the silver-shot robes of office leveled a cold stare at the Councilman who spoke.

"I have read it in the stars that guide us." She spoke icily. "Do you doubt my talent, blessed by the stars which we dwell among?"

The man backed down quickly at the reminder. "Please forgive me for my rudeness, it was not my intent. Would the High Chancellor kindly oblige the Council and explain what the stars have shown?"

"Such information must not be withheld in such dangerous times. I have read a dire warning, and we cannot sit idle and let it come to pass!" The High Chancellor swept the Council chamber with a stern gaze, her voice carrying easily through the suddenly hushed chamber, the air charged with tense anticipation of her words. "When the Sun rises upon the Heavens' Spear, the Darkest Star too shall rise. And come to the call of the Fallen Star, giving birth to a deeper Darkness. When the Fallen Star treads on Forbidden Ground, the last bastion of the Kindred shall fall, and all will be Darkness."

The silence that reigned after the last echoes of the prophesy faded was matched only by the cold void of space as the Council took in the High Chancellor's words.

"You mean that she is the key to our downfall? That she will run with open arms to the darkness?" A councilwoman sounded patently incredulous. "She may be shamed beyond redemption and foolish, but certainly not that foolish!"

"You are blinded by the fact she was your daughter, Councilwoman Polaris." The High Chancellor glanced at the noblewoman. "You have said it yourself. She is shamed beyond redemption. What hope has she then, other than to join our enemies and strike back at the star home she has abandoned?"

The Councilwoman of House Polaris lowered her gaze. "I see the merit of your words, High Chancellor, but I still find it difficult to believe."

"I must agree with Councilwoman Polaris. The child may have been foolish in her interests, but she never indicated sympathy for the dark ones. She is of the lineage of our last Guide, and took with her the Two Stars. Surely that means she will rally against such temptation?" Another member of the Council argued.

"Will she?" The High Chancellor inquired dryly. "Or has she taken them with her to rob the Kindred of two ancient and powerful weapons against the darkness? The stars do not lie. It is apparent that she is the Fallen Star of my reading. She will call out to the darkness, perhaps even accept it fully. And when she returns to this city, a place forbidden to her for all of time, she will bring our ending upon us. Ours, and that of the world Below as well!"

"But there is no way to return here from Below." A younger member of the Council noted, feeling a burning need to point out the obvious. "There is no direct link to lead one from the surface to the city. That is why she left in the dangerous manner she did. There was simply no other way to descend."

"Yes, but also recall that she has mastery of the ancient arts to a degree that has not been seen in the Kindred since the Great Ascension." The High Chancellor's eyes narrowed to wary slits. "Our last Guide Star used magics we cannot begin to fathom to lift this city from the bindings of the world Below, and so much knowledge has been lost since. If this city could be lifted into the high Heavens, then what is to stop her from doing similar on a smaller scale? What of that dark fortress that we all felt lifting up into the high Heavens some time ago? Shall we wait for her to raise her own dark tower and come to us, when it shall be too late to prevent her?"

"What then do you suggest, High Chancellor? These are grave matters, and must be given great consideration." Councilwoman Polaris asked in a voice forcibly devoid of emotion.

"We must stop her before she can rise to any great power. She must be injured at the least, and certainly disoriented. It will be some time yet before she can act. This is our opportunity, our best chance to destroy her or capture her so that she may face trial for her crimes." The High Chancellor stated plainly. "We must send a contingent Below, to track her down and stop her, thereby averting the prophesy and saving us all."

"I see the wisdom in stopping her before she can muster any great power, but how then will those who go after her return? Will they be banished as well, or shall we make an exception in a policy that has stood since the Great Ascension and permit them to return?" One of the older Councilmen asked.

"I suppose that depends on how events may unfold. We do not know the details of what has transpired Below in our absence. The Solar Children may yet thrive, and may still be fighting the darkness. They may well have perished. We cannot know. Those who go to save us all… they may or may not be permitted to return. It is possible that they may perish in saving the Kindred." The slender woman replied with a certain air of indifference. "But which is the wiser choice? To sacrifice a few and stop this prophesy from coming to fruition, or to do nothing, and witness the death of the world, both Below and in this city?"

That sent a ripple of uneasy murmuring through the Council. Were it not for the High Chancellor's dire star reading, they would have all been automatically against any such action, directly in opposition to the way they had lived since anyone could remember. The dark prophesy, however, changed things rather drastically. The High Chancellor surveyed the chamber as the debate ran through the gathered Council, some voicing doubts about the prophesy, others uneasy about breaking the centuries-old tradition of non-interference. She let them discuss it at length among themselves before smiling calmly and bringing the meeting back to order.

"Gathered members of the Council, representing all Houses of the Kindred, we have heard all arguments on the matter. Let us now vote on it, and let the stars guide our course!"

* * *

_Author's notes: _Oh, more vaguely explained hints of Bad Things. Back to Django and Sabata next chapter, I promise! 

Comments appreciated, flamers will be purified. Or at least lit on fire.


End file.
